September 2025

Letter from the Project Director, Dr. Lori Collins-Hall

Dear Colleagues and Friends,

It’s a true pleasure to welcome you to the inaugural issue of our newsletter and the launch of Phase II of the Endeavor Lab Colleges (ELC) Collaborative—a bold and committed partnership among small liberal arts colleges dedicated to advancing student well-being, resilience, belonging, and purpose.

Since 2016, 10 mission-driven colleges – Antioch, Bennington, Blackburn, College of the Atlantic, Prescott, Randolph, St. John's (Annapolis and Santa Fe), Sterling, and Warren Wilson – have come together with the support of Endeavor Foundation to reimagine student-centered, experiential, and holistic education in the liberal arts.

In 2023, we began Phase I with a generous $3.275 million grant, focused on strengthening mental health and wellness across our campuses. This summer, Endeavor Foundation deepened its commitment with an additional $5.22 million to launch Phase II: “Enhancing Student Learning and Experience Through Belonging, Well-Being, and Purpose.”

This collaborative is more than a collection of institutions—it’s a living, evolving ecosystem built on shared values and deep relationships. Together, we are designing sustainable, scalable practices to meet this moment with compassion, creativity, and community. We invite you to join us in building a more connected, inclusive future for the liberal arts and for higher education.

In future issues, we’ll highlight local campus initiatives, project outcomes, stories from students and faculty, and opportunities to deepen our shared mission.

Thank you for being part of this transformative journey.

Warm regards,

Lori

We’re excited to announce the launch of the Endeavor Lab Colleges newly designed website—your go-to hub for all updates, insights, and resources related to our work in well-being, belonging, and whole-person learning.

Visit the new site to explore:

• Our Story, Partners, and The Team

• The ELC’s “9 Dimensions of Well‑Being” and Initiatives

• Blogs containing campus stories, and News & Events

• The ELC Members Only content housed in our shared Knowledge Base, designed as a dynamic library in which you can access curated articles, case studies, tools, and best practices emerging from our collaborative efforts.

We invite you to browse around, share with others at your college, and dive into the growing wealth of shared resources supporting our work across the Collaborative. Please share feedback and content ideas at ELC@sterlingcollege.edu.

Upcoming Event: Community Resilience and Repair at Warren Wilson

Join our colleagues at Warren Wilson as they journey to recovery one year after Hurricane Helene devastated their campus and the surrounding community of Swannowa. 

  Warren Wilson College invites you 

“Out of Chaos, into Community: Healing Ourselves and All of Creation”

Wednesday September 24, 2025

Zoom opens at 5:30PM EST

6:00 pm Gathering and Welcome 

6:30 Keynote with Rev. Nontombi Tutu 

Chaos is a part of life, change is inevitable, transformation is a choice. How do we as a community choose to be transformed?

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Share your favorite wellness app or resource by emailing ELC@sterlingcollege.edu. We will share it in future newsletters.

Check out Matt’s Blog -  Nature Rx in the Liberal Education: Five Ways Colleges Can Enhance Well-being Through Nature

In Spring 2025, Dr. Matt Vosler led participants from other Endeavor Lab Colleges (ELC) in a series of community conversations titled “The Healing Power of Nature.” This series explores the theory and strategies to connect students to nature, enhance nature-based programming on campus, and start a Nature Rx club. Recordings of The Healing Power of Nature and Nature Rx resources can be found in the ELC Knowledge Base, available exclusively to ELC member institutions.

Dr. Vosler has been working in the outdoor industry for the past 20 years, both in the field and in the classroom. Dr. Vosler had the honor of graduating from Ohio University (BS), Minnesota State University, Mankato (MS in Experiential Education), and returning to Ohio University for a second Master’s degree in Recreation Studies, as well as a PhD in Curriculum and Instruction in Education. His research focuses on developing more creative and empowered leaders, both in and out of outdoor spaces. As a part of the Endeavor Collaborative, Dr. Vosler serves as the Nature Rx project lead. He focuses his efforts on connecting students with outdoor spaces through Nature Rx and nature-based programming to develop opportunities to empower learners with understanding and skills to support their mental health and wellbeing. Along with his work with the Endeavor Lab Colleges, Matt has had the great privilege to work for world class organizations such as Outward Bound, Five Rivers MetroParks, Ohio University, Ithaca College, Wingate Wilderness Therapy, and Naturalist at Large, and utilizes those experiences to support students and student learning.

If you know someone or a program at your institution that you would like to be highlighted, please contact ELC@sterlingcollege.edu. 

The Endeavor Lab Colleges Collaborative is proud to spearhead five innovative initiatives, funded by Endeavor Foundation, aimed at driving systemic and institutional transformation in mental health and well-being for our students and campus communities. These initiatives represent the most promising outcomes from the first phase of our work, and affirm our commitment centering holistic mental health and well-being at the heart of the liberal arts educational mission. Each initiative serves as a vital spoke in our work to integrate traditional clinical and reactive approaches with proactive, whole person models that intentionally cultivate well-being, resilience, belonging, and purpose throughout the liberal arts experience.

• Cultivating Curricular Review and Innovation

• Community Care and Community Resilience

• Virtual Center for Purposeful Life and Work

• Mapping Belonging

• Nature Rx and Nature-based Programming

For more information on each initiative please visit: The ELC Initiatives.

Join the ELC Wellness Movement!

Invite Colleagues to Subscribe to the Newsletter.

Highlight your campus in a Blog or News story shared with ELC@sterlingcollege.edu

Join the Knowledge Base and Share Resources with others in the Collaborative.

Connect with your campus liaisons or the Project Director.

Support the work on your campus!